Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and there's one word fans keep using to describe the former "Iron Man" actor's return: desperation.
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00:00Robert Downey Jr. is returning to the Marvel Cinematic Universe,
00:04and there's one word fans keep using to describe the former Iron Man actor's return.
00:08Desperation.
00:10At San Diego Comic-Con 2024, Marvel revealed that RDJ would be making his return to the MCU
00:16as an alternate universe version of the fabled Fantastic Four villain Doctor Doom.
00:21While the Comic-Con crowd went nuts,
00:22the casting was swiftly met with more mixed reviews online.
00:29One Redditor posted,
00:31"...the worst creative decision since the return of Palpatine in Episode IX."
00:35Somehow Palpatine returned.
00:38Another user wrote that it reeks of desperation and added that the news that Anthony and Joe
00:42Russo will also be returning to helm the next two Avengers films is, quote,
00:46"...giving me the same energy as J.J. Abrams returning to do Star Wars."
00:50A brisk scroll through X reveals similar posts claiming the news
00:53reeks of desperation and that it, quote, "...shows signs that Marvel is desperate."
00:57Well, you do seem like you're in desperate need of leadership.
01:02Why, thank you.
01:03That word, desperate, is one that shows up again and again and again
01:07among the immediate reactions from Marvel enthusiasts.
01:10Much as one might like to chalk this up to the typical overblown fan response,
01:14it is hard to read this as anything other than a flop-sweat-soaked move of epic proportions.
01:18This weekend should have been a triumphant one for Marvel,
01:21with the studio capping off a record-breaking box office opening for Deadpool and Wolverine
01:25with a slew of exciting Comic-Con announcements.
01:28Instead, the RDJ as Dr. Doom news only seemed to underline just how much of a pickle the MCU is in.
01:34You must be truly desperate.
01:37The past five years have been pretty rough for the biggest franchise in the world.
01:40The multiverse saga has struggled immensely to find its footing,
01:43coming off as anticlimactic so hot on the heels of Avengers Endgame and the
01:47conclusion of the Infinity Saga with it.
01:49Yet as much as the finger of blame can be pointed at factors beyond Marvel's control,
01:54including the pandemic, the death of Chadwick Boseman, and Jonathan Major's arrest and
01:58conviction, the house that Kevin Feige built has only made things worse by seemingly learning the
02:02wrong lessons from all the missteps it made along the way.
02:06Take how the disappointing Eternals was followed by Spider-Man No Way Home soaring high near the
02:10end of 2021. The lesson that should have been imparted is that big swings don't always land,
02:15but it's important to keep innovating and taking risks anyway.
02:18Instead, Marvel Studios has elected to attempt to replicate the formula of No Way Home by making
02:23even more films that rely heavily on nostalgia and cameos as selling points, culminating with
02:28the announcement about RDJ and the Russos. It's working okay financially for the studio so far,
02:34as most recently evidenced by the massive turnout for Deadpool and Wolverine,
02:37but what happens if audiences tire of this approach before Marvel is ready to actually
02:41go out on a limb again? You can see how playing Doom might appeal to Robert Downey Jr.
02:46Besides the truckload of cash that Marvel undoubtedly dumped in his driveway to entice
02:50him back, it's a role he narrowly missed out on playing two decades ago in the 2005 Fantastic
02:55Four movie. Not to mention, it's an opportunity for him to pull a historical heel turn, the kind
03:00that would only further cement his legacy in the superhero genre after his run as Tony Stark.
03:05He'll probably be great in the role, too, because he's Robert Downey Jr.,
03:12and he's yet to be bad in a movie he's even half-invested in. The thing is, though,
03:16Marvel doesn't need RDJ as Doom to work in the long term. The true gambit is betting that
03:21audiences will be intrigued enough to see how the casting pans out to make the next two Avengers
03:25movies into a cultural event. And who's to say it won't work? Bringing RDJ back into the mix may yet
03:30give Marvel the space it needs to take its time and come up with a truly sustainable plan for the
03:34future, one that isn't based on a dwindling supply of nostalgia. But it's a desperate measure in a
03:40desperate time all the same, and the fans are right to call it out as such.